Top Five Questions relating to Attleborough leasehold conveyancing
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Attleborough. Before diving in I require certainty as to the number of years remaining on the lease.
If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Attleborough - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.
I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Attleborough. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Attleborough where we have experienced a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Attleborough conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.
All being well we will complete the sale of our £425000 maisonette in Attleborough in 10 days. The freeholder has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Attleborough?
Attleborough conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally involves the purchaser’s conveyancer submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address such questions the majority will be willing to assist. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you should you wish to sell the property.
What makes a Attleborough lease unmortgageable?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Attleborough. Most leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
- A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the premises
- A duty to insure the building
- A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
- Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage
A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. HSBC Bank, Skipton Building Society, and TSB all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Attleborough - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing
-
Is anyone aware of any major works in the near future that could increase the maintenance charges?
The best form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this situation the tenants enjoy control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually employed if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders.
It would be wise to find out as much as possible regarding the company managing the building as they can either make your living at the property much easier or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you will be in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day issues such as the upkeep of the communal areas. You should not be afraid to ask other people if they are happy with their service. On a final note, be sure you know the dates that the service charges are due to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending the funds.
Other Topics